


By Grace of the Gods

by BrightLightsFullMoon



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst, Demigods, F/F, F/M, M/M, mythology AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-28
Updated: 2013-12-28
Packaged: 2018-01-06 12:59:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1107117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrightLightsFullMoon/pseuds/BrightLightsFullMoon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For as long as Stiles and Lydia could remember, they had been secure in the walls of their temple. The outside world had not threatened them. But all good things come to an end.</p>
            </blockquote>





	By Grace of the Gods

**Author's Note:**

> Will add more tags as story progresses.

“Do you not enjoy this, brother?” The streets were filled with well wishing, people reaching out in an attempt to touch them or to acquire their blessings. Of course, they were carried too far out of reach of the much lower common people.

Stiles knew his sister seemed to enjoy this; she always did enjoy the more frivolous affairs and the occasions where they were out of the temple even though those occasions were few and far between. He cast his eyes down on her as she lay down, red hair cast over her bare shoulders and sewn in the auburn waves were many kinds of flowers that he didn’t care to remember. All knew was that they grew in the gardens that surrounded the temple.

She did enjoy tending to the plants when the temple was closed or not busy, which didn’t happen very often either.

“Not particularly.” When these days came it only served as a reminder to Stiles as how much he preferred the more sacred and quieter air of the temple. “They are bargaining for blessing when most of them wouldn’t have the nerve to pray at the temple on a normal day.” He lounges beside his sister, whilst she gave an elegant waves, he did not. “What do they even expect from us? To come down and bless their homes for peace of mind?

“Oh how different we are, brother.” Lydia smiles at the calls, so much praise being thrown in their direction. It was quite a delightful feeling.

“Well we are only half-siblings, remember.” Stiles reminds her with a small smile, they may only have the same mother but that was not a matter of important. “Same mother, different fathers.”

“Do not remind me of that scum. I was blessed the day mother had him stuck down.” Her loving eyes turned cold and unforgiving as her body tensed. “The greatest gift I have ever received.”

“Yes, well forgive me if I do not look upon my father with the same disgust that you did yours.” He pretended to dust off his already pristine toga, gazing over the crowd with a weak smile, hoping it would look sincere. He should place a blessing to those he sought it out at the temple but those who pretend to be faithful on these occasions when they were on show, he could not stand.

“But of course, your father is a gem of a man.” It was something they could both agree on. “He comes to the temple every day to look after us, even me when he need not.” The kinder look fell back onto her features. “Shame we shall not see him today.” It would seem like a bad thing but the adoring crowd just lavished affection them. “But the people adore us, look!” Lydia plucked up a rose that had landed near her feet. “They bestow gifts upon us.”

“Gifts for a blessing” Stiles mutters, sighting their destination in the distance. “Why are we being summoned for a visit with the empress anyways?”

Very rarely were they called out of their temple, very rare did they want to. It was clear that whilst most of people would lavish affection and ask for blessings from them, some intended to hurt them.

So in their temple did they stay. A fate he assume was endured by the others, the other god-lings.

“Who knows?” Lydia wasn’t sure herself. “Perhaps it would be for advice. Perhaps it would be for other things.” They had never set eyes on the palace before but even from a distance it looked to be beyond expectations.

A huge colossus of marble built up in the most spectacular fashion. “This is where I want to live. It’s beautiful.” She leans over to Stiles, speaking with a small grin.

“And we do not have this beauty in our temple?” Stiles could not deny how beautiful the palace looked but it paled comparison to their temple. At least in his eyes.

“Of course we do but we see the marble walls of our temple every day.” The roaring crowd had come to a halt near the gates of the palace. It would be to keep the undesirables out of their way. Although it was not so far away that the sight of the empress could not be seen by those who had lined the streets to catch sight of the seldom seen children of Athena.

Stiles pulled himself onto his knees so he could get a better look.

The palace balcony was not empty as he much expected it to be. It was the place that the empress made all of her addresses from. Their arrival to the palace was to be no exception.

The cheering only seemed to get louder as they passed through the gates of the palace although sudden wave of nerves crashed into them as they looked up at the rather packed balcony.

“Empress Talia Hale.” Lydia informs her brother as she catches sight of the empress amongst men, surrounded by her closest of kin.

“I know who the empress is.” It was impossible to not know who the gracious empress was. Her name was a chant across the lands. A goddess amongst men. Literally. “The daughter of Zeus and Hera,” He explains but it was a tale they both knew. “Chosen to live her life in the mortal realm in the hopes to better man amongst them rather than above them.” The priests and priestess’ of the temple brought them up on many wonderful tales most tales of their mother but sometimes that of the gods.

Lydia nods. “Indeed.” Her eyes seemed to be glued to the empress who looked every inch of a goddess. “Along with her brother, Peter, who…” She smiles, noticing the way the royals seemed to watch them.

“Who did not desire to live life in the mortal realm so Talia challenged to a battle. If she won, Peter would be force to accompany her down to earth as her eternal companion.” It was one of his favorite tales and one of the only ones that he did hear from the heads in the temple but instead from his father in the nights he would come to the temple. “But if Peter won, Talia would be forced to stay in Olympus with him.”

Their carrier came to a halt, only a few feet below the empress and her kin. “Of course we now that ended.” She whispers with a pleased grin.

Of course Talia and Peter were not the only in who stood within view. Gathered amongst them when the heirs, Laura and Derek.  
Stiles and Lydia kept their heads down before they were requested to come out from their cavern.

The empress held her hands up, and instantaneous silence fell over the crowd of silence. It was a feat of awe to command the silence over so many people. “Today we welcome the children of Athena into our company.”

Stiles and Lydia took that as gesture to walk out into the full gaze of the empress and her family above. He held his arm out so Lydia could take it, keep up a graceful walk, reveling for a few moment in the howling cheers.

The guards marched up to them, four in total, two to the front of them and two to the back, complete protection for them as they were led inside. Although it was foolish to Stiles. Who would dare harm them in the presence of the empress?

“You know who the others were?” Stiles asks, his eyes taking in the sight of the place, portraits lining the halls, gold threads hanging from the windows. Nothing but the best for the royal family.

“Oh you ask such stupid questions at times.” His sister elated a short laugh. “Talia’s two children, Derek and Laura. Both fathered by Ares.”

“A little incestuous.” Stiles comments, but in this day and age it did not seem to matter to most people.

“Most gods are born from incestuous relationships. Even demigods tend to enter slight incestuous relationships as it is not advised for us to procreate with mortals.” Something that had been drilled into their head since they were children.

“I have never even met another demigod before.” They were led through the labyrinth of rooms and Stiles wonders if they were even going to greet the Empress and her family. The place was far more complex in it’s interior.

"I have." Lydia chimes, using her free hand to brush the loose stand of hair out of her face as they followed the guard/

“What? You have?” It was hard for Stiles to believe as he was seldom parted from his sister. Most of their days were spent side by side in their temple.

“Indeed. I have met Lady Allison.” Lydia explains. “Daughter of Artemis, she is quite the delight.”

Stiles would have made a comment but their company of guards halted at one of the doors, grand in stature, ivory made and lined with gold. No doubt it had been a brilliant tribute. Words were carved into the sides.

“In glory is misery and in misery is glory. We pledge our offerings in hopes our glory shalt not be tainted.” It was like a chant as both of them let the words fall from their lips without even the thought even crossing their mind and the act made the doors open seemingly of their own accord.

“You must go ahead alone. We are not permitted past these doors.” The guards parted to allow them through stepping over the threshold only for the doors to close behind them.

 “Is this an enchantment?” Once alone, Stiles let his fingers ghost over the marble of the back of the door. The same words, words he wondered if anyone else could read.

"It is indeed.” It was a surprising answer in a voice that made both Stiles and Lydia almost jump out of their skin, the empress standing not twenty feet from them. “Written in characters that only those with divine parentage can understand to read aloud.” Talia’s hands were claps at her side over the light grey silks of her dress. “That is why you are sent in here alone, the guards could not enter over the threshold.”

“A protection?” Lydia trusts herself to move closer but at the same time feeling a lot less gracious in the presence of the goddess. “Surely with such divine power and wisdom you would not need protection?”

Talia peers down at the young woman, her cousin, both of them were. “Mortals have more selfish desires.” She gestures for them to come out of the corridor. “This place holds someone of my most invaluable objects.”

Out of the darkness led them into a room filled with light unlike the dimly lit corridor. Objects of gold, silver and bronze dotted around the room. The shining objects providing a brilliant distraction.

"These are magnificent.” Stiles dared not touch anything in the room he was in such awe he had not noticed the others filling out from the corridor.

"The spoils of war.” Stiles found himself distracted by the voice, turning from the jewel to something much more enticing. The larger man hovering behind him and had Stiles said he didn’t find the sight quite spectacular he would by lying.

 "Lady Lydia, Lord Stiles, I do believe you have not been introduced to my children.” Talia moves gracefully to lounge herself over one of the chairs, a look of pride of her face. “My beloved twins, Derek and Laura.”

Lydia feels so incredibly small in the presence of the children of Ares. Like Talia, two purebred god and they looked they could take down entire armies on their own. She notes that her brother seemed to take it all in his stride.

“How many wars have you fought in?” Stiles questions, crossing his arms over his chest, gazing up to the prince and he found it difficult to not objectify him. The son of war was perfectly bronzed by the sun, with large hands and biceps, Stiles was sure he could rip a man’s limbs from his body. The only covering his body other than the chains of gold that hung from his neck, was the rolled down tunic that was clasped to his hips.

“More than you can count, child” Beads of sweat rolled down his bared torso and Stiles tried his hardest to not be distracted. There should have been scars, thicker skin covering where an arrow or a blade may have pierced the flesh but there was nothing.

“I can recount more wars than you have fought in. So please do not challenge me.” There was a sharp gasp from Lydia, her hair flurrying around her

“Your brother is very self-assured if he believe threatening my brother will do him much good.” Lady Laura was but a few inches taller than Lydia but she looked just as battled hardened as her brother. Her body adorned by a ripped tunic that made her look more like a serving girl than a goddess, hair thick stands of chestnut lock pulled into a knot on the top of her head. “Recounting wars from tales is not like fighting in one.”

The tension hung in the air but regardless Stiles stood his ground, “The children of the War Goddess that have yet to see battle.”  Stiles looked upon god with the blood boiling in his veins. “You think all your scrolls can prepare you for the real thing, you feel that you can understand the harshness of battle just because you have the blood of Athena in your veins.”

“Derek!” The snapping sounded more like a clap of thunder from Talia, silencing everyone around her. “We are not to antagonize our guests, especially under the circumstances.” Lydia bunched her dress up in her hands as she took a few elegant steps over to her brother, slipping past the great warrior that was Prince Derek whose gave a mocking bow as he stepped back.

“The children of my sister are to be given our graces.” Talia waves a small hand, gesturing for them to sit across from her. “The city looks to your to give us blessing of hope and justice, in such times when we are facing a war.”

"A war?" said Lydia folds her legs under her, lounging so she could rest her body aside Stiles’. "Certainly there has been mentions of unrest outside of the walls of our city.” She raises her fingers to fidget with the tiara nestle amongst the red curls, looking around the room, noticing the clear absence of Talia’s brother who been on the balcony with her.

“We have had the people flooding to the temple as of late, begging for grace, begging for a blessing upon their homes, upon their children" Stiles plucks at the hem own his toga, the cloth he had crafted himself. “We have not heard of why and we have not questioned. We have only given what they desire.”

Talia casts her eyes to her own children, a cautious nod to them. “It is not just you’re graces that have been sought. My children’s graces have been sought as have my own. It has been the same at all of the temples.”

"Even those of the meaningless god.” Laura scrunches her nose up only to receive a look of disgust from her mother.

“No god is meaningless and you are lucky to not be stuck down for that remark. Minor, yes. But meaningless, no.” Lydia and Stiles keep silence not wanting to get between the exchanges. "We are not sure what lies in front of us but I have feeling it is to do with the unblessed, you of course know of the unblessed?”

Lydia offered her voice. "The unfavored children of the gods. Those who were not given a blessing upon their birth." They had come across the sight a fair few times in their time in the temple. Children of Athena, who were not wanted, cast aside and left for dead. "Of course we were led to believe that the unblessed were killed." A brutal show of force but apparently it was a necessity.

"That is the often used method but not always." Talia answered with a frown as she rose to her feet. "Some escape their fate and live with vengeance within their hearts for being cast asunder.”

Stiles tightened his hand around that of his sister’s. “Without offending your grace, may I ask why we have been called before you?”

 Talia stares out to the beautiful scenic view of the sea, a pretend pout gracing her lips. “I want to know what you know of this. I have a feeling that the unblessed with take revenge of their blessed siblings so I have been bringing the children of each temple to see what they know. Tonight I am holding a very extravagant ball in the palace to bring us all together in the hopes it will send a message to anyone who is harboring in this unrest.”

“A message that says we stand together.” Derek had silently watched as the worry seeped onto the faces of the halflings.

“We shall attend.” A gentle smile graces their lips but the worry was already there. They were under threat.


End file.
